GRP 56-2 Commando, Eddy Robinson, Iraq, Counter Terrorism

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GRP 56-Co hosting for this podcast is Army veteran Tim Kolczak the man behind the Veterans Project. On with us for this podcast is Australian Special Forces Veteran Eddy Robinson. Eddy has multiple combat rotations with the 2 Commando Regiment. We discuss Eddy's career path, get into some combat stories, and honor Eddy's best friend Corporal Cameron Baird, VC, MG. Corporal Cameron Baird is the first Australian commando to be awarded a Victoria Cross and the first posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross for Australia. Corporal Baird is also the 100th Australian to be awarded a Victoria Cross. He's one of Australia’s most highly decorated soldiers of the modern era. We discuss Iraq, counter-terrorism, and Afghanistan. Below is an excerpt from the episode:

John: I'm reading about the rise and roots of ISIS. A lot of it is credited a to the Jordanian-born terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The U.S. named him as one of the reasons for going into Iraq when he was just in charge of a small terror cell prior to that. After naming him it catapulted him into the spotlight.  Making him a major player. He then stoked the flames for a civil war between Sunni and Shia Muslims throwing the country into chaos.

Eddy Robinson:  My experience there was from a contracting perspective 05-06 period. Every morning before 10'o clock you hear the huge IED's being detonated. For the guys on the ground, it was relentless.  Zarqawi was the perfect catalyst for making the situation worse. We got our intelligence reports about mass graves being found on the side of the road. People being mass executed by these guys. It was a very difficult situation during that time.

Tim Kolczak: I joined in 05 I was 17. My drill sergeants were coming back from their 18-month tours. You could just tell how it affected them. We were the first trainees to get trained up by these guys. I remember the recruiter telling me not to become a truck driver because 1 in 5 was getting killed. One of the guys I knew was killed by a Somali contingent in Samarra. We were fighting people from all over the globe.

The Veterans Project:

www.thevetsproject.com

Social media: TheVeteransProject

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Music provided by Caspian:

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GRP 55-SAS Major DR. Dan Pronk, TacMed Australia, RIP Scott Cooper Dayton

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GRP 55-First and foremost I want to send my condolences to the family of Senior Chief Petty Officer Scott Cooper Dayton, 42. Dayton is the first American service member to die to fight the Islamic State in Syria was a decorated and highly experienced Navy explosive ordnance disposal specialist.

On with me for this podcast is Australian SAS Major Dr. Dan Pronk. Dan did multiple deployments and was the regimental medical officer for both 2 commandos and SASR (Special Air Service Regiment). Dr. Dan completed his medical schooling on an Army scholarship and served the majority of his military career with Special Operations Units, including four tours of Afghanistan and over 100 combat missions. Dr. Dan was awarded the Commendation for Distinguished Service for his conduct in action on his second tour of Afghanistan. We discuss bleeding control, how to treat internal bleeding, and prolonged field care. Major Pronk is the Medical Director for Tac Med Australia which provides training for civilians, military, and police tactical units in Australia. Below is an excerpt from the podcast:

John: One good thing to come out of this Global War on Terror is the advancement of medical treatment.  There are various methods and procedures that have been effective at saving lives on the battlefield. One thing you said that interested me was a way to slow down internal bleeding. Can we talk about that a little bit?

SAS Major DR. Pronk: Medical literature goes back and forth on how useful this drug is. The name of the drug is Tranexamic acid or referred to as TXA. It's not a new drug, but its only in the last decade or so that people have been looking at it in a new light. The biggest cause of preventable death on the battlefield was people bleeding out so hence the use of arterial tourniquets.  The Soldiers might have stepped on an IED and got horrendous bilateral lower leg amputations if you can put a tourniquet high above that wound and cut off the blood flow to that leg you can prevent him from bleeding out.

If it's a little bit higher maybe in the groin or the armpit, it's what we call junctional bleeds. It's too high on a limb to a tourniquet. So that's where your quick clot and hemostatic dressing come in. You can cram that into the wounds and the chemicals in those dressings can speed up the clotting process and stem the bleeding.  Once you get bleeds inside the body, the chest, the abdomen, the pelvis areas where you can drop a huge amount of blood but can't get a tourniquet or quick clot on is difficult to control. The key there is to get that person to a surgical facility quickly.

TXA or Tranexamic Acid the concept of it is when your body starts bleeding chemicals in your body will identify it and try to stop that bleeding. It's an evolutionary process that stops us from bleeding out. As soon as your body starts forming clot chemicals will break down the clots. TXA inhibits the system that breaks down clots. TXA stops the system of breaking down the clot.

Dan Pronk:

http://www.tacmedaustralia.com.au/

https://www.facebook.com/TacmedAustralia/

Music provided by Caspian:

www.caspianmusic.net

GRP 54-Dave Maynard, Navy SEAL, Global Response Staff, Warfighter Academy

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GRP 54- We have a special guest on for today's podcast. Dave Maynard is a lead instructor at Warfighter Academy, and a retired U.S Navy SEAL who made it into the Teams in 1972 just missing the Vietnam war. Dave left the Navy after a couple of years as the SEALs were downsizing after the war. During this time, he worked repairing Navy ships as a contractor, as well as working in different capacities in the realm of tactical development for Fleet Training Center.  Once the Global War on Terror kicked off Dave became a contractor for the U.S Government's Global Response Staff. Below is an excerpt from our conversation.

John: You joined the SEAL Teams just as the Vietnam war was winding down, worked as a ship repairing contractor, developed tactics with the Fleet Training Center, then became a GRS Contractor working for the Government.

Dave Maynard: In 2006 in Iraq we got into a major gun battle. I took a round in my helmet. We had to rescue three guys that were trapped in a vehicle. Surrounded by a lot of enemy fighters just pounding these guys. We got into a big firefight but got these guys out. We were having some contract issues. Black Water lost the contracts and they wanted us to switch over to a different company. Now they’re trying to pay us $400 a day during a time that more contractors were getting killed then during any other time of the war. I told them they’re going to lose all of the talent, and fast.  So we had the GRS heads come in and they said you know what screw all the contractors we’ll just direct hire these guys.

Now I can go to Amman Jordan, Uzbekistan, or wherever they want to send me so we go wherever they want us to go. The guys in Benghazi were typical GRS guys. Outnumbered, outgunned, but they fought like lions. 

Dave Maynard:

www.warfighteracademy.com

Music provided by Caspian:

www.caspianmusic.net

GRP-53 VetTV, Donny O’ Malley, USMC

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 Here is the link where you can make your pledge and help hit the fundraising goal for VetTV: www.Launchveterantv.com

GRP 53- Co-hosting for today's podcast is British Army Combat Medic Chantel Taylor. On for this podcast is retired USMC veteran Donny O'Malley. Donny is a combat veteran and has created VetTV. "VET Tv will be a streaming television network that functions exactly like Hulu or Netflix. It will be filled with all the shows that you’ve joked about with your buddies since the day you joined.

We make shows that accurately recreate the post 9/11 veteran experience and we do it in the most realistic, offensive, and hilarious way possible. To fill up this network with shows that you want to see, we need your support and your vote, because if we don't fund this network, no one will." The deadline for the Kickstarter campaign to make you pledge will end tomorrow night Wednesday, Nov 16th.

This is the first time ever a platform like this has been created so I highly encourage all of the shows listeners, and my followers on social media to contribute to this campaign. The link to do so will be accessible by clicking the post link below. Here is an excerpt from the episode.

John: Donny you've recently retired from the Marine Corps, but you've got a lot going on with jumping into starting this company. Can you talk about your time in?

Donny O' Malley: I joined on January 09 and got out in 2015. I joined when I was 25. It made for a very different experience for me as a Marine and as an Officer. I was coming into a very battle-hardened, salty, seasoned Marine Corps. All of the way down to the fucking Supply Clerks who were in convoys getting into firefights and blown up. Everybody had been to war. Coming into that was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I respected everybody. I was honored to walk into such a battle hardened Marine Corps. I wouldn't say I'm all hardcore battle hardened. I will say that I was never phased by my combat experiences. I was meant to do that job. Meant to go to war.

I felt the happiest and content that I've ever felt in my life was in the midst of combat. Till this day I feel like I would never have that feeling again.

VetTV’s Social Media:

Facebook-Instagram: VetTV

GRP 52-Combat Flip Flops, Election Day

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GRP 52- On for this episode is Donald Lee, and Griff Griffin from Combat Flip Flops. Both are former Army Rangers with multiple combat rotations.  Co-hosting is British Army Combat Medic Chantel Taylor. Combat Flip Flops is a very interesting company that makes Flip Flops in Afghanistan, and other products in places like Lao's in southeast Asia. From now till the end of the month you can get a 20 percent discount upon check out just enter the coupon code "Global Recon".  They are also having a veteran’s day sale from Wednesday till Friday. 20 percent off site wide coupon code “WELOVEVETS”.

Today being election day we get into politics, some of the causes and effects of war and what is viewed as the best way to combat poverty which is really a big reason for a lot of the people fighting over in the middle east. Not each enemy fighter is a fanatical jihadi in a lot of cases fighting is the only way they can earn money. We talk about contracting, the transition out of the military and most importantly the consequences of wearing socks with Combat Flip Flops!

Griff talks about a time that while on a rotation into Iraq a coordinated attack was launched on a checkpoint and using drone footage they were able to follow the perpetrators of the attack back to their safe houses. An operation was immediately launched in which they captured those responsible for the attack. When asked why they did what they did one of the men stated simply it's a way to earn money.

Combat Flip Flops:

www.combatflipflops.com

Facebook/Instagram: CombatFlipFlops

Music provided by Caspian:

www.caspianmusic.net